Israeli hostage vowed to return to his family – only to find they had been killed

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Eli Sharabi learned his wife and daughters had been killed after his release from captivity in Gaza but is ‘mentally strong’, says British brother-in-law

“Don’t worry, I will be back. Whatever they do to me, I will be back,” was one of the last things Eli Sharabi told his wife and daughters before he was abducted by Hamas. And when the 52-year-old was freed after 16 months in captivity in Gaza, he was desperate to know if his family were waiting for him.

It was only then that he was told that his British wife, Lianne Sharabi, 48, and daughters Noiya, 16, and Yahel, 13, had been murdered at their home in the Be’eri kibbutz in Israel on 7 October 2023.

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Anxiety rises in DR Congo capital as M23 rebels advance in east – Reuters

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  1. Anxiety rises in DR Congo capital as M23 rebels advance in east  Reuters
  2. Rebel advance causes panic in Congolese border town Uvira  Reuters
  3. DRC rebels promise security after seizing Bukavu in country’s east  Al Jazeera English
  4. In Latest Advance, Rebels in Congo Say They Have Entered a Key City  The New York Times
  5. DR Congo: Live updates as Security Council holds emergency meeting  UN News
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Workshop producing fake Picassos and Rembrandts found in Rome

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Prosecutors seize 71 canvases and say evidence suggests an art restorer was behind frauds

A clandestine workshop has been discovered in Rome where fakes of paintings by some of the world’s most famous artists, including Pablo Picasso and Rembrandt, were produced before being sold online.

The discovery was made in a house in a district in the north of the city by a team from Rome’s public prosecutors’ office and the forgeries unit of Italy’s art squad, which they said has gathered “important evidence” to suggest an art restorer was at the centre of the racket.

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Bolsonaro indictment leaves Brazil’s tropical Trump staring at prospect of jail

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The ex-president faces charges of a murderous conspiracy while his US counterpart has surged back to power

At the height of Jair Bolsonaro’s haywire presidency, Brazilian activists projected their deepest desire on to the Tower of London, where Guy Fawkes once languished after plotting to blow up parliament and assassinate the king.

“Jail Bolsonaro,” their wordplay read.

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US agriculture department says it accidentally fired bird flu officials

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Agency works to rehire employees shortly after touting plan to ‘optimize workforce’ by cutting staff with help of Musk

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said it accidentally fired several employees working on the H5N1 avian influenza, or bird flu, outbreak and is now trying to rehire them.

The about-face came after the USDA touted its plans to “optimize its workforce” by firing workers and terminating contracts, actions aided by billionaire Elon Musk’s unofficial agency, the “department of government efficiency” (Doge), NBC News reported on Tuesday.

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Hamas offers handover of all hostages to Israel if next phase of ceasefire agreed

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Benjamin Netanyahu signals readiness for talks on second phase by appointing adviser Ron Dermer to lead delegation

Hamas has said it is ready to release all its remaining hostages in a single exchange if the ceasefire agreement with Israel moves forward to a second phase next month.

The offer came as the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, signalled his readiness to talk about a second phase of the Gaza ceasefire after an extended delay, by appointing one of his closest advisers, Ron Dermer, a US-born cabinet minister and former ambassador to Washington, to lead the Israeli delegation to the talks.

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British journalist missing in Brazil for 11 days

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Foreign correspondents’ association urges authorities to step up search for Charlotte Alice Peet, 32

A British journalist has been missing in Brazil for 11 days, a foreign correspondents’ association in the country said on Tuesday, urging authorities to step up their search efforts.

Charlotte Alice Peet, 32, last communicated with a friend on 8 February, according to a statement from the Rio de Janeiro-based Association of Foreign Press Correspondents (ACIE).

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Artists demand National Endowment for the Arts roll back Trump restrictions

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More than 400 artists sign letter urging organization to resist funding ban for projects focused on DEI and gender

Donald Trump’s efforts to influence US cultural institutions received more pushback on Tuesday, as a group of more than 400 artists sent a letter to the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) calling on the organization to resist the president’s restrictions on funding for projects promoting diversity or “gender ideology”.

The letter, first reported by the New York Times, comes after the NEA declared that federal grant applicants – which include colleges and universities, non-profit groups, individual artists and more – must comply with regulations stipulated by Trump’s executive orders. The new measures bar federal funds from going toward programs focused on “diversity, equity and inclusion” or used to “promote gender ideology”.

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Climate change: World’s glaciers melting faster than ever recorded – BBC.com

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  1. Climate change: World's glaciers melting faster than ever recorded  BBC.com
  2. Glacier melt intensifying freshwater loss and accelerating sea-level rise  European Space Agency
  3. The world’s glaciers have shrunk more than 5 per cent since 2000  New Scientist
  4. European glaciers have shrunk 40% since 2000, study says  Financial Times
  5. Melting glaciers caused almost 2cm of sea level rise this century, study reveals  The Guardian
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Northumberland postal worker jailed for sexually assaulting women on rounds

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Michael Stewart abused his position to target women and subject them to ‘traumatic ordeals’, said police

A postal worker described as a “calculating and dangerous predator” has been jailed for six and a half years for sexually assaulting women when he was making deliveries on his rounds.

Police said that Michael Stewart abused his position to target his victims and subject them to “traumatic ordeals”. The family of one of his victims have blamed Stewart for her suicide.

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Thousands rescued from illegal scam compounds in Myanmar as Thailand launches huge crackdown – The Guardian

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  1. Thousands rescued from illegal scam compounds in Myanmar as Thailand launches huge crackdown  The Guardian
  2. A top Chinese official tours Thai-Myanmar border to highlight crackdown on scam centers  The Associated Press
  3. More Kenyans rescued from human trafficking in Myanmar amid growing concerns  Nation
  4. Japanese boy says he was forced to assist with phone scams fraud in Myanmar  The Japan Times
  5. More than 1,000 rescued from cyber scam centres near Thailand  Sky News
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